Strathcona County is supportive of the local business community. With so many activities, organizations, programs, applications and technologies available to assist businesses, knowledgable local experts can help guide you. Contact information found at the bottom of this page.

Below are just a few current initiatives.

Connecting your business with industry

Businesses in the region are invited to attend the 2024 Supply Chain Forum - an event connecting attendees with many of the region’s major industrial companies. This event provides an opportunity for contractors, tradespeople, food service, hoteliers, and other small and medium businesses to connect and engage with the industry community. It is a great way for them to learn about upcoming jobs and bidding opportunities with companies like yours.

This event is a regional partnership initiative between Strathcona County, Sturgeon County, and City of Fort Saskatchewan.

Top 3 reasons to attend:

1. Find out about upcoming major industrial projects.
2. Expand your customer base and connect with companies in the region.
3. Learn how to get on local industrial company vendor lists.

Attend and speak directly with representatives from companies including Dow, Keyera, ME Global, Pembina, Shell, Sherritt, Wolf Midstream and more.

DATE: Wednesday, April 3
TIME: 4-7 p.m.
COST: $25

Get tickets!

Business retention and expansion survey results

Businesses, thank you for sharing your thoughts, top priorities, and how you view Strathcona County as a place to do business.

From October 12 to November 5, 2021, Strathcona County and MDB Insight conducted phone surveys and interviews with over 400 local businesses.

Highlights from the report 

• 91 per cent responded that they were ‘very’ or ‘somewhat satisfied’ with Strathcona County as a place to own and operate a business
• 86 per cent of the business respondents were locally owned and operated 
• 81 per cent of business owners are confident on business resiliency and supports in Strathcona County 
• Looking forward on the next 12 months, a larger portion of Strathcona County businesses expect an increase in revenues (55 per cent) compared to those that expect a decrease (10 per cent)

 Review survey results here.

As a result of the phone surveys, interested businesses were contacted by an economic development officer for follow up. Economic Development and Tourism’s core services is to assist them in expanding into new markets, new buildings or new product offerings; and to create connections and build relationships. Other businesses may require supports due to plans for downsizing, relocating, selling or closing. Through these interviews Economic Development and Tourism were able to not only assist individual businesses, but also to customize programming to fill any current service gaps. 

Develop your online presence

• Do you need help with e-commerce? 
• Are you struggling with building a web presence? 
• No idea how to build a social media strategy? Or how to find analytics?

Help is available through the Digital Economy Program, a free service open to small businesses who would like to undergo a digital transformation. The program is a partnership between Strathcona County, the University of Alberta School of Business, Business Link, and Digital Main Street.

How it works

Eligible businesses sign up online for the program, and if accepted, get free 1-on-1 help with digital services.

Eligibility

• Less than 50 employees
• Registered in Alberta (Indigenous owned businesses that are not registered in Alberta may still be eligible, please contact the Digital Economy Program Coordinator directly.

Learn more about the program and sign up today at yourdep.ca